Colorado
16-13, 8-9Pac-12
Stanford
19-6, 13-4Pac-12
After An Early Surge, Buffs Fall To No. 7 Stanford
November 19, 2015 | Volleyball
STANFORD — Despite coming out fast and strong in the first set (25-18), the University of Colorado Buffaloes were unable to overcome the No. 7 Stanford Cardinal on Thursday night at Maples Pavilion as Stanford took the last three sets 25-12, 25-19 and 25-18 to win the match.
“That was a tough match for us and despite the tough loss, this will serve us well as we continue fighting through this tough Pac-12 schedule,” head coach Liz Kritza said. “We have had many great successes and we also have had some tough days, and today's was a tough one, but I do know this group of players is tougher.”
Senior Alexis Austin led the team in kills with 13 on 31 attacks to hit .258. Sophomore Gabby Simpson led the team in points with 14.5; she had 12 kills, two aces and one block assist.
As a team, the Buffs hit .204 with senior Nicole Edelman dishing out 38 assists. The Buffs tallied 46 kills and 24 errors on 108 attempts.
Redshirt sophomore Joslyn Hayes led the Buffs with a hitting percentage of .455, recording seven kills on 11 attacks with just two errors.
The Cardinal hit .297 with 60 kills and 17 errors on 111 attempts. Hayley Hodson led Stanford with 16 kills (.344), while Merete Lutz was also in double digits with 13 kills. She hit a match-high .632 with one error on 19 swings.
The Buffs out-dug Stanford 38-30. Junior Cierra Simpson recorded a match-best 12 digs. Austin recorded 10 digs, while Edelman had seven. Both Gabby Simpson and sophomore Stephanie Shadley recorded three.
The Buffs gained an early momentum in the first set, claiming four straight points for a 10-6 lead. After taking its first time of the match, the Cardinal put up two points but failed to immediately take back the momentum.
Stanford finally caught up to the Buffs scoring three straight to tie the set up 16-16, this time forcing the Buffs to take a timeout. A kill by Gabby Simpson led off three points in a row, which widened the Buffs' lead to 22-17. Stanford only scored once more before the Buffs finished off set one 25-18.
Stanford took an early advantage in set two, causing the Buffs to take an early timeout, after securing an 8-3 lead. Colorado tried to rally but the Cardinal capitalized on its momentum and took a 20-11 lead before the Buffs were forced to take another timeout. The Cardinal finished set two off with four straight points and a final tally of 25-12.
The Buffs and Cardinal hung tight at the beginning of the third set until Stanford went on a six point run, heightening their lead to 12-5. The Cardinal maintained momentum and increased the score to 16-7. Following an Austin kill, the Buffs rallied to within four (23-19) which forced Stanford to take a timeout. Despite this, Colorado's effort proved not enough and Stanford took set three (25-19).
Set four began with five straight Stanford points, the Buffs only scoring two before taking their first timeout of the set (8-2). The Buffs were able to tally five points in a row halfway through the set, bringing the score to 14-11, but never charged ahead of the Cardinal. Stanford was able to finish off the Buffs after securing a final score of 25-18.
“We will turn the page and make sure we are ready to continue our successful season the next time we take the court,” Kritza said. “The score doesn't always reflect the ebb and flow of the entire match, but there were some really good plays out there tonight as there are when two strong teams match up.”
The Buffs, who are now 16-13 (8-9 Pac-12) will face the Cal Bears on Saturday, Nov. 21 in Berkley. The match is set for an 8 p.m., MT start and will be live streamed on the Pac-12 Networks.
